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Religion and churches
Where
my feet lead me to |
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No
map, no plan. Just a regular pair of shoes, and the will to know
more about religion in Dublin. When I was walking by Trinity College
I could not imagine what the day would place in my way. Still walking up O'Connell Street I had not found my first stop. Suddenly, I walked into Abbey Church, popularly known as “Findlater church”, mentioned in two James Joyce's novels. This church, part of the Presbyterian Church of Ireland, hosts many social programs and its community shares prayers with Methodist, Anglican and Catholic neighbors. When I got into the church, the differences with a catholic church became obvious: simplicity. Perhaps, a remembrance of the first Christians will remain poor... No figures; just space. Wooden coffered ceilings; no frescoes. A huge stained-glass rose window. And Jo. Jo van der Flier, a Dutch who has spent the last 50 years in Ireland, kindly became my guidance in the church. “This is a Christian church. Everybody is welcome” was his reply to my initial explanations about our research, and goals. |
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I
was walking around the area looking for a warm place to have a cup
of hot chocolate while waiting for the French service at Abbey Church,
when I passed by a door that lead into a patio. Some people were
coming out. There was no sign offering an invitation to come in.
But, without any reason, I did. The door from where people were
going out claimed “Ad Maiorem” and “De Glorian”;
the coat of arms, “Loyola”. Jesuit, no doubt. When I came in, I found a crowded chapel, noisy indeed. No carvings, again. Byzantine iconography. A long queue of people waiting to receive the blessing form that looked slightly different from a catholic priest. The ritual was unknown for me, although familiar at the same time. A blessing on forehead, hands, kisses on a cross and portraits of Christ or the Virgin with Jesus child. In that moment, I realized that those people were doing the sign of the cross up-down-right-left. Right-left? Father Godfrey is the head of a Romanian Orthodox congregation placed in the catholic Belvedere College. As it happened with Jo, “Father God”, as he is known among his people, welcomed me as any other member of his community. I realized how natural it is for Dubliners to assume that most of them are all Christians, and how much they have in common. |
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Hours later,
walking around the commercial area south Trinity College, the
sound of a harp stopped me. It was coming from a side street.
I had not changed my straight-forward walk all that afternoon
but, without reason, I turned right, following two Asians, who
were rushing into a place. Again, I came into a building without
knowing what I would find inside. Again, the destiny was leading
my feet. A Catholic church, St. Teresa's. I had used the hidden
back door. The main one was closed because of the restoration
of the church. By Fernando Reyero Noya |
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Christ
Church Cathedral Dublin |
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Ireland
is a very religious country and almost all of the people are Christians.
There are a lot of beautiful Churches here, inviting people to come
in. This Sunday morning the sound of the bells invited us to visit
the Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin. It was very exciting, so
Michael and I decided to take part in the service. There were plenty
of people. Most of them were members of the Church of Ireland, some
were the members of another Christian tradition and the rest of
them were Anglicans from abroad. Everything was very good organized
there. |
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Everybody got small brochures with the texts of prayers and other words for the service, so that everybody could follow the mass fluently. The whole ceremony took one and a half hours. There is also a nice baptistery in a separate room. The Church, 1000 years old, is very nice from in and outside. So there are a lot of things to see. And because of the good atmosphere I would like to recommend you to go there and pray. By Ingrida Adamukaityte |
Churches
of Dublin |
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Everybody
knows that 90 % of the Irish are Catholics – but a short glimpse
at the Dublin telephone directory suggests that this is only part
of the truth. Among the 45 churches listed in the Dublin Independent
Directory (http://www.independentdirectory.ie), I found nineteen
Catholic, nine Churches of Ireland, seven Baptist, six Presbyterian
and four Pentecostal churches. Although this does certainly not
reflect real membership figures, it suggests a bit more heterogeneity
than expected. We wanted to learn more about church and religion
in Ireland. In fact, the most famous churches in Dublin, Christ
Church Cathedral and St. Patrick’s, have belonged to the Church
of Ireland since the reformation in the early 16th century. This
denomination is very similar to the Anglican Church of England.
However, its privileged status as a state church was called into
question in the 19th century and it was reshaped through the disestablishment
of 1869. Today it is a self-governing body with an Episcopal structure,
most of whose members live in Northern Ireland. |
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As
the two Dublin cathedrals are considered major tourist attractions,
hefty admission fees are charged to finance the necessary restoration
work. So I bought my ticket to St. Patrick’s Cathedral and
entered the church; tourists and their cameras dominated the scene
– with and without tripods, flashlight and their guide books.
I realised that I would have to participate in a church service
in order to experience the cathedrals’ dignity and their spiritual
inspiration. Therefore I was glad to participate in the Choral Evensong
Service in Christ Church Cathedral later on. The psalms and prayers
sung by the choir and the Biblical readings provided a stimulating,
relaxing and inspiring contrast to the hustle and bustle of the
city – although attendance was relatively low. |
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As I am a Catholic myself, I also attended Mass in the Church of St. Nicholas in Myra, a 19th century church built to celebrate Catholic emancipation. The interior of this former principal Catholic church of Dublin combines 19th century neoclassicism with striking colour and light effects (illuminated halos, brightly coloured statues of saints …). The only thing that struck me as different from my experiences with German churches was the duration of the announcements which were integrated into the service. Here German priests are more prone to refer people to the parish news bulletin. A door collection for the charity St. Vincent de Paul reminded me of the role which the Catholic Church still plays in terms of charity. By Andreas Faulstich |
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